Auditor gives Hamilton a clean opinion while flagging minor fixes to lien and fixed-asset records

Bob Swisher, the township's auditor, told the council that the firm’s work resulted in “an unmodified opinion. This is a clean opinion.” He described two limited areas of noncompliance that will require a corrective-action plan: reconciling outside liens and tax-sale premiums to cash on deposit and improving fixed-asset accounting and inventories.

Swisher, who identified himself as “a partner with Company,” said the issues did not affect the township’s overall financial condition. “They weren’t wrong, but they needed to be corrected,” he said, adding that auditors and finance staff spent time cleaning up long-standing book entries so the finance office would have a “clean slate going forward.”

Council members pressed for timing. The clerk reminded the audience that state rules require the chief financial officer to sign an affidavit acknowledging the audit recommendations and the corrective-action plan. Township staff said the lien-reconciliation work will proceed throughout 2026 and aim to resolve that comment before the end of the year. A physical fixed-asset inventory will be timed with a planned move to a new municipal building and may extend into 2027.

Council members praised the finance office’s work in recent years and said maintaining the improvements would help secure better bond ratings and lower borrowing costs. “You’re heading in the right direction,” Swisher said.

What happens next: the township will file the corrective-action plan with the state Division of Local Government Services and the CFO will execute the required affidavit; the council and administration said they will track completion timelines during 2026.